Lost Girl
by Adja Sontag
Summary: After stealing an antique camera, Yuffie begins to experience strange and disturbing dreams. Yuffie must unlock the secrets of the Camera Obscura before she is forever lost to the darkness. Formerly Ninja Obscura
1. Chapter 1

A/N:I looked and I couldn't find any crossovers between Final Fantasy VII and Fatal Frame...I thought it would be an interesting mix...unbeta'ed (if anyone wants to help with that I'd really appreciate it) and as always I will eat your soul if you still this story. Chiao

Yuffie Kisaragi self proclaimed 'single white rose of Wutai' was bored. Her small frame was draped over the bar counter of the Seventh Heaven, one hand idly twirling her large shuriken. She had come to Edge to see her friends, as a surprise visit. But Cloud was out on a delivery, Cid had gone back to Rocket town, Barret was off trying to find oil, Vincent was, not surprisingly, no where to be found and Marlene and Denzel were off exploring. Everyone had something to do, except Yuffie.

"I'm bored." The ninja princess sighed.

Yuffie tilted her head when she heard the soft chuckle coming from the other side of the bar to see Tifa standing with one hand on her hip, and a smile tugging her pink lips. "You could help me clean, you know?"

Yuffie made a face as she sat up, swinging her booted feet off the counter. "I'm tired of cleaning. I want to do something fun! I'm gonna go for a walk. Find some adventure!"

The ninja twisted around to she face her friend. "Why don't you come with me? It'll be fun."

Tifa shook her head, causing her deep brown locks to sway. "I can't. I have to get the bar ready to open." She gave Yuffie a small smile as she gestured around the seventh heaven. Yuffie sighed as she slid off the counter top, her footsteps barely making a noise as she made her way to the entrance. "If you see Denzel and Marlene, please tell them I want them home early." Tifa called out as Yuffie slipped out of the bar.

Yuffie traveled aimlessly, weaving her way through the winding streets, having no real destination in mind. The city of Edge was still rebuilding itself after Bahamut Sin, the memory of that epic battle made the ninja princess smile. The sun shined brightly and a warm breeze blew through the city. It seemed like all of the children were outside playing, enjoying the weather, having fun. Yet Yuffie couldn't help feeling isolated as she watched the children playing together. It seemed like everyone had something to do or somewhere to be, except for her. Crossing her arms in front of her slender frame, she shook her head. "I've been hanging around Vincent to much...."

Yuffie's sharp eyes wandered over to a throng of people standing outside an apartment building. Tilting her head to one head, she made her way over towards the crowd. Her small frame made it easy for her to slip through to the front to see why everyone was standing around. "What's goin' on?" Yuffie surveyed a mound of belongings. Everything from cloths, books, to furniture. A portly man glanced her way. "Yard sale, some girl from A8 disappeared a month ago and left all her stuff. So the super is sellin' it"

Yuffie turned to the man surprise etched on her face. "Disappeared? Like she's dead in a ditch somewhere? Hasn't her family tried to find her?"

He shrugged a broad shoulder. "I dunno....she was kinda weird, kept to herself a lot. I never saw anyone with her, and she was kinda twitchy."

"Oh, you hush up about her, she was a lovely girl." An elderly woman with a great grey poof of hair shook a finger at the fat man. The man shrugged again before lumbering off. Yuffie turned to the elderly lady. "Who was she?"

"Oh...."The lady tapped a crooked finger against her lips."I believe her name was Alice....Alice....something, I can't really remember, but she was very polite and painfully shy. She was a photographer. She took some photos of my kitty, Captain Whiskers." The elderly women gestured to the many cameras and photography equipment that lay in the haphazard pile. "Huh..." Yuffie bent down to examine the cameras and equipment more closely as the lady wandered away. Pawing through the mess, one camera bag caught her eye. It was very old looking, and had an ancient camera inside, it looked odd next to all the new shiny cameras. The ninja smirked as she picked up the bag, feeling the familiar thrill as she slyly glanced around. No one was paying the lithe girl any mind as she slipped away. She chortled as she rounded the corner, heading back to Seventh Heaven with her prize.

By the time Yuffie returned, the sky had turned a rosy shade of sunset and the Seventh Heaven was bustling. She slipped inside, making her way through the throngs of people. A tipsy patron stumbled into her, slurring an apology and giving her a pinch. She felt her cheeks burn pink as she raised the camera bag to throttle the offending him. "Why I-" The drunk simply blinked at her, unaware of his impending demise.

She turned her head as her dark eyes caught a glimpse of blood red. "Vincent!"

Yuffie lowered the camera bag, the off smelling drunk man completely forgotten as she hurried over to the booth the morose man occupied.

"When did you get here? Where've you been? Why haven't you returned my calls?" She slipped into the seat opposite of Vincent before the man could object. The camera bag came dangerously close to spilling the blood red glass of wine in front of Vincent Valentine as she dropped it on the table.

There was a moment of silence between them as the former Turk regarded the bubbly girl through his dark bangs. He moved his glass of wine closer to himself.

"...Hello Yuffie. Please, have a seat."

The ninja waited for an answer to her many questions, but he merely sipped his wine as he regarded her with red eyes.

"Well?" Yuffie moved her leg towards Vincent, prodding him with her booted foot. She stared expectedly at him for a few moments before slumping back in her seat, crossing her arms.

A hint of a smirk ghosted across the pale mans face, hidden by the red color as he regarded the petulant girl.

"What's in the bag?"

Yuffie perked up instantly as she reached into the bag with dramatic flare, pulling the camera out and proudly holding it over her head. "Ta da! The newest acquisition of the famed ninja Yuffie Kisaragi!"

She grinned madly for a moment before she cradled the camera close to herself, her smile drooping. "Now if only I knew how to use it....I've never seen a camera like this before..." She fiddled with it for a moment before she looked up at the red cloaked man. "Say, Vincent, you wouldn't know how to use this thing, since your old-"

Vincent coughed into his wine as Yuffie's eyes widened as she realized what she said, her cheeks grew a deep rosy pink. "-er.....older, than me....I mean....you....you know...know stuff, cause you're worldly an' stuff..." Yuffie wanted nothing more than to sink into the booth or wink out of existence as she slouched down.

Vincent regarded the flustered young girl through half closed eyes he allowed himself a soft chuckle as he reached out his clawed hand. It was hard to stay mad at the bubbly ninja. "Let me see the camera."

Yuffie smiled when she heard Vincent chuckle, she never heard him make any sound of joy before. She let the camera slid into his outstretched hand, her eyes lingering on the golden talons. "I have no idea how to use this thing. The only camera I have is a lil' digi cam so I've never used, y'know, real film before."

Red eyes lingered over the camera before focusing on the young ninja. "Where did you get this?"

"I found it." Yuffie shrugged a bare shoulder.

Vincent stopped his examination of the camera, lifting his blood red eyes to Yuffie.

"Found it?"

"Um....yeah...I was walking and I found it." Yuffie lowered her own eyes as she squirmed under the former Turks intense gaze.

A soft, weary sigh escaped his pale lips as he set the camera on the table, his voice soft. "Don't lie to me, Yuffie."

The young girl snorted. "I'm not lying! I did find it....it was just sitting there in a pile of other camera junk-"

"You stole it." Vincent stated.

"Hey, I had a free moment and I wanted to see how you two were doing." Tifa appeared out of the crowd, her smile fading as she sensed the sudden tension between the two. "What happened?"

"Yuffie stole a camera." Vincent stated before taking a sip of his wine.

"Oh Yuffie, I thought you'd gotten over that." Tifa sighed as she turned her chocolate colored eyes to the younger girl.

"Gotten over what? I can't help it if people leave there stuff lying around" Yuffie grinned as she shook her head, looking from Vincent to Tifa. Her smile faded as she read the look of disappointment etched onto their features.

"Listen, Yuffie-" Tifa's voice was soft, like she was speaking to a child.

"Forgot it, I just.....I....nevermind." Yuffie's good mood was shattered and she was no mood to be treated like a little kid. The ninja grabbed the camera and stuffed it into the bag as she slipped out of the booth. Yuffie shoved her way through the crowd of people as she made her way to the stairs. She heard Tifa call her name, concern filling her voice. Yuffie ignored her as she thundered up the stairs, heading for one of the spare bedrooms. Barging into the empty, darkened room the young ninja threw first the bag then herself onto the neatly made bed.

Yuffie fumed silently before she lifted her head, glaring at the cause of her troubles. "I don't see what the big deal is. It's just an old camera no one wanted."

With a soft sigh Yuffie lifted her head off the bed and reached for the camera bag. Taking the camera out, she turned it around in her hands. She tried to push the shutter, but it wouldn't move. Setting the camera down on the bed Yuffie rifled through the bag, it held nothing save for a roughly bound book.

Intrigued the ninja moved to the bedside lamp, switching the lamp on before she opened the book.

"It's a journal..."Yuffie's brow knitted together as she tried to read the small neat handwriting.

"Today while on assignment I made the most extraordinary find. I found a beautiful antique camera. I am very excited about restoring it, so I can use it.-" Yuffie read aloud to herself. "Oh boy...why do boring people keep diaries?"

She skimmed the next few lines, her excitement faded as her bright eyes scanned the entries. "I have not been able to fix the camera. Indeed it seems to be beyond repair, for most exposures I take have a flaw. The photographs to not turn out as I intend, patches of fog pervade the pictures. I decided to investigate what could be causing this odd flaw and came upon an interesting concept: spirit photography. I have never believed in such nonsense, but I must admit I am intrigued ever more. In my research I took the camera to a specialist in the occult. He seemed both excited and scared by the camera. He thought it might be one of the cameras made many years ago. A camera that had the power to capture spirits, the Camera Obscura-" Yuffie yelped a sudden knock invaded the room. Dropping the book she bolted for the door, her heart racing. "Who's there?"

"Uh....it's me."Tifa's muffled voice floated through the wooden door. "Are you alright? We were worried..."

Yuffie had forgotten her earlier anger at her friends. "Yea, I'm peachy...I just want some alone time, k?"

Tifa was quiet for a moment before answering. "Alright, if you change your mind I'll be up for a bit."

Yuffie nodded her head before she realized Tifa couldn't see her. "Yea, maybe....night."

The ninja could hear Tifa's soft footsteps heading down the stairs. Swinging her feet off the bed she slipped her shoes off, letting them fall to the floor with a muted thump. Yuffie grabbed the diary and lay down on her back, picking up where she left off. Yuffie flipped through the pages to find not only writing but drawings and photographs as well, all about spirit photography, the power of the camera obscura, and the odd incidents that seemed to happen to those who possess it. She kept reading until her eyes grew heavy and the book sank to her chest as she drifted off to a dark slumber.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I finally updated. Huzzah! Sorry for the wait, my computer kind of died and I had to perform CPR. Also I moved into a new apartment...so without further ado...there's the next chapter of Lost Girl

P.S. I don't have a beta, so if you find any boo boos I might have missed, please tell me. 3

Yuffie was lost to the dark abyss of a dreamless sleep. A damp, clammy cold pervaded through the thin layers of cotton that clad the young ninja. She shivered as she reached for a blanket only to feel tattered cloth. Opening her eyes Yuffie found herself surrounded by darkness. Her breath caught in her throat as brown orbs adjusted to the dark and saw the unfamilar shapes that littered the room. A room she did not recognize.

"Tifa?" She fumbled to find the lamp only to find herself not on a bed, but on a futon.

"Where am I?"  
Yuffie carefully stood up, feeling her way through the room as a sense of dread filled her. "How did I get here? Was I sleepwalking?"  
The air felt heavy in the small room and smelled stale, faint musty. She shuddered as she crawled off the rotting futon, wishing for a flashlight or her shuriken. She gingerly made her way forward, only to bump into a low table. Uttering a string of curses that would have made Cid blush, Yuffie kicked the offending table across the floor. She tried to slow her breathing and her racing heart as she fumbled towards the doorway. The floor was softer than it should be, it felt strange yet familiar.

Yuffie's eyes had adjusted to the murky gloom. It was easier to make out the shapes of the room. Except for the discarded furniture laying about the design of the room reminded her of the rooms in Wutai. Even the floor was made, not from wood, but tatami. The young ninja's brows knotted together in confusion. There where no Wutai style rooms at the Seventh Heaven or in Edge as far as Yuffie knew. A low anguished wail suddenly sounded from outside the room, causing a chill to run down her spine. The ninja slid open the door and hurried into the darkened hallway to find whoever was in so much pain.  
"Hello? Is anybody out here?"  
The end of the hall was swallowed by darkness making it impossible find the source of the noise.

"H-hello?" Yuffie shuddered as the sticky breeze kissed her clammy skin. The hallway seemed narrow and the floor sagged, causing the Yuffie to feel claustrophobic. Using her hands to feel her way along the tattered wall, she stumbled as she found an open room, with only one futon laying forlornly in the center of the room. The air was less stale as a cold wind blew in through a broken window. Through the window Yuffie could make out a small mist covered courtyard with a pond beneath the room. It seemed she was on the second floor of a house. Maybe if she were able to find her way outside into the misty night, she might be able to find someone to help her, since it seemed this house was abandoned. Through the fog, she could barely make out the outlines of other houses. The ninja felt the stirrings of panic deep in her stomach, everything about this place was unsettling. She had no idea how she got here, yet she knew she shouldn't be here. Yuffie saw movement out of the corner of her well trained eye. "Hello?"

She moved around the room, feeling her way around, yet found no one. Nothing was heard, except her own foot steps and heavy breathing. Shivering the young ninja found herself wishing for her shuriken as she slowly made her way back out of the room and down the hall.  
"Ah!" Yuffie cried out in surprise as her foot made contact with something metallic, cylindrical. She bent down to retrieve the object. "A flashlight?"  
With a flick of the switch, a weak beam of sickly yellow light cut through the gloom. Yuffie saw she was at the end of the hallway with a rickety set of stairs leading down into more darkness. She swung the light back down the hall looking at the stained walls before bringing the small patch of light back to the stairs. Yuffie saw no point in staying upstairs as she tested the first step to make sure it would hold her weight before cautiously making her way down. The narrow stairway lead to the main room. Yuffie cast the yellow beam around, taking in her surroundings.

Once beautiful fusuma partitions, grandly painted with legends of Wutai's past barely clung to there frame. The stories they told forever silenced as the paper peeled and the painted cracked. A few ornate cabinets lined the walls, most missing the shelving or doors. More moldy futons littered the floor. A shrine to Leviathan dominated a table set against the far wall. The Ninja carefully made her way towards the shrine, hoping in vain for something to help her get out, maybe some kind of Materia. The statue of the great protector was broken, many small cracks crisscrossed the beast and it seemed parts were even missing. Reaching out a hand Yuffie brushed her cold fingertips against the stone scales, only to quickly draw back as if burned. The statue was moist, warm. The young ninja let out a groan of despair. She'd had enough of this strange place as she flung her only light source with all her might. Her normally cheery voice was laced with anger and desperation.

"What is going on? Where am I? Hello? Is anybody there? I heard you! Where are you?"

Yuffie lost her balance as she kicked at splintered cabinet causing her to fall into a heap on the decaying tatami. Howling, she pounded her fist in frustration on the moldy flooring as she fought the urge to cry. Running a hand through her hair Yuffie refused to give in to her fears. She'd survived through far worse than waking up in an odd house: Sephiroth, the end of the world, the Remnants. Yuffie decided to ignore the fact that she was with her friends for all of those events. Taking a few deep breaths she tried to center herself as she cast her eyes around the darkness, regretting the loss of her flashlight. She picked herself up off the floor, brushing off a liberal amount of dust before she began to hunt for her light. Scattered vases, picture frames and glass littered her path as she gingerly picked through the trash. The ninja let out an excited yelp as she found her literal ray of sunshine. She hugged the metal casing for a moment, but her relief was short lived.

Yuffie's breath caught in the back of her throat as she felt the hairs rise on the back of her neck. The ninja could feel someone in the room, watching. Slowly she stood, straining her brown eyes as she scanned the invading gloom. Sweeping the spotty blade of light around she made out a hint of white by a pillar. The deep weight of foreboding settled in the pit of her stomach as she realized it was a person in a robe standing by the pillar.

Yuffie took a deep breath. "Can you help me….I…I think I'm lost…"

The figure stood still for a moment as the temperature dropped further. In spite of her training, Yuffie had the urge to flee, to turn around and flee without looking back. The figure raised its head, its face obscured by long veils of black hair. Suddenly it rushed towards the young girl without moving its legs as if pulled by an invisible string. Yuffie screamed as she threw her hands up to block even though she shut her eyes, unable to look at the terrible figure. The cold, clamminess that pervaded the entire house seemed to press into her, squeezing her in an icy embrace as she heard a horrified scream and realized it was her own. The blackness pulled her down, the spiraling sensation made her dizzy as the cold turned into intense heat and a brilliant light flooded her vision.

"Yuffie! Wake up!"

Brown eyes opened as Yuffie jerked awake trying to fend off the stranger, trying to banish the darkness. Yet there was no darkness, no one trying to attack her. She was in the Seventh Heaven still, she was safe.

Yuffie gasped for breath as she struggled to make her sluggish body move. She'd never had this much trouble waking up. A wave of nausea hit her sending her scurrying for the bathroom, where she emptied her stomach.

"Are you alright?"

Yuffie gasped softly, raising her head from the toilet bowl. She nodded mutely as she looked at Marlene. The little girl was rubbing her forehead where a small bruise was forming. "You don't look alright, were you having a nightmare?"

Yuffie stared at Marlene as she let her head rest on the toilet seat, trying to comprehend what was happening as she heard someone hurrying up the stairs. "Did I hit you? I'm sorry."

"What happened?" Yuffie struggled to keep her eyes open as she heard Tifa's voice. From her position all she could see was part of Marlene and Tifa's bare feet.

"I think Yuffie had a bad dream. I heard her mumbling and went to check on her. She seemed really scared when she woke up, and accidentally smacked me."

Yuffie heard the other woman fussing over Marlene before she felt a cool hand touch her forehead. She wanted to pull away, insist that she was fine, but she could barely keep her eyes open.

"Yuffie, you're burning up. I think you're coming down with something."

The soft rush of water was heard as Tifa moistened a washcloth before wiping up the bit of sick that clung to the corners of Yuffie's check.

"You need to get back to bed."

"I'm fine…"Yuffie whispered as Tifa helped her up, half carrying her back to her room.

"I'm not ….sleepy...I don't want…to…go back to sleep…" Yuffie badly wanted to add that she was afraid of waking up again, alone in the dark house, but she had already fallen back asleep.


End file.
